Head mounted control means for radial drills



Dec. 22, 1936. SCHAUER I 2,065,477

HEAD MOUNTED CONTROL MEANS FOR RADIAL DRILLS p Filed Jan. 22, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 22, 1936.

' HEAD MOUNTED CONTROL MEANS FOR RADIAL DRILLS 1.. SCHAUEQR 2,065,477

Filed Jan. 22, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2} 40 INVENTOR BY 7 V QWM W Z4 ATTORNEYS I I Patented Dec. 22, 1936 PATENT QFi iQE HEAD MOUNTED CONTROL MEANS FOR RADIAL DRILLS Lawrence Lee Schauer, Wyoming, 'Ohio, assignor to The Cincinnati Bickford Tool Company, Oakley, Cincinnati, Ohio, a. corporation of Ohio Application January 22, 1935, Serial No. 2,867

4 Claims.

This invention relates to radial arm drilling machines and more particularly to improved means for controlling the vertical movement of the arm on its supporting column.

As heretofore provided, means for controlling the translation of radial drill arms have included a shaft journaled lengthwise of the arm beneath the guideways for the tool-head, a lever splined to said shaft and mounted to be moved with the tool head and adapted to .oscillate'said shaft in all of the positions of the tool head on the arm, and means actuated by oscillation of said shaft to control the powermeans which selectively efiects elevation or depression of the arm.

Although such constructions are capable of controlling the translation of the arm they have been found to be somewhat of a'menace to the operator because the location and movement of the control lever .are such that duringsetting up of the workpiece the operator may accidentally shift the lever and cause the arm to be lowered while he is therebeneath.

The present invention has for i an object to eliminate the danger inherent in such prior con-- structions while retaining all the advantages thereof.

This has been attained by so locating the control lever for the arm translating mechanism that there is no likelihood of the operator accidentally engaging it Whilesetting up his work and in providing locking means for the lever so that it may not be shifted to eifect translations of the arm even should it be accidentally engaged.

Another object of this invention .is to provide a safety control means of this nature which readi'ly may be applied to conventional radial drills at a minimumof expense and which will necessitate only minor changes in the machine as previously constructed.

Other objects and advantages will he in part indicated in the following description and in part rendered apparent therefrom in connection with the annexed drawings.

responding parts throughout all the views, of

which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a radial drill embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional View on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front view, partly in section, of the drill head and a portion of the radial arm showing the location and construction of the control lever for the arm translating means.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic development of the arm translating means and the improved control therefor together with the arm clamping means, and showing interlock means for preventing simultaneous operation of the translating and clamping means.

Fig. 5 isan enlarged left side view of the arm translating control lever and its connection with the control shaft which extends lengthwise of the arm, together with the means for positively locking the lever in its neutral position.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the invention is disclosed as embodied in a radial drill comprising a base i, upstanding column 2 secured to the base, an arm 3 mounted on the column for vertical movement thereon and a tool head 4 translatable horizontally along the arm and provided with a rotatable and translatable tool spindle 5. Power to move the arm vertically on the column and to rotate and translate the spindle is provided by a motor M mounted upon a rearward extension i of the arm.

The .means for translating the arm on the column comprises a stationary screw 6 extending lengthwise .of the column and a. nut i rotatably but non-translatably journaled in the arm and having a threaded connection with said screw. Rotation of the nut in one direction causes the arm to be elevated and rotation in the opposite direction causes it to be depressed. This rotation of the arm translating nut is obtained from an arm shaft 8 which is driven from the shaft of the motorM through gears 9 and H). The direction of rotation of the nut and consequently the direction of translation of the arm is determined by a reversing mechanism designated generally as R, in Fig. 1, and comprising driving bevel gears H and I2 (see Fig. 4) rotatably journaled on the arm shaft, a similar driven bevel gear l3 in mesh with both of the driving gears and a gear train consisting of gears l4, l5, l6 and il connecting the gear l3 with the nut l. The gears Ii and I2 selectively may be clutched to the arm shaft and thereby caused to drive the gear i3 and, through the gear train above mentioned, to rotate the nut to effect either elevation or depression of the arm. For this purpose clutches ii and I2 are associated with the gears H and M! respectively and are adapted to be actuated by ad u l n spool I8 slidably mounted on the arm shaft. This spool may be shifted axially on the shaft 8 selectively to render the clutches effective by a shifter l9 mounted on a vertically disposed oscillatory shaft 20 journaled in the arm 3. The means for oscillating this shaft will be described later. For convenience of description the drive through one of the clutches to the nut 1 may be considered a forward drive and the drive through the other clutch to the nut a reverse drive.

As is usual in machine tools of this nature, the arm is adapted to be clamped to the column in its various positions thereon and to prevent the arm translating means and the arm clamping from being rendered operative simultaneously an interlock mechanism is provided between the two. The girdle portion 3 of the arm which surrounds the column 2 is split and is adapted to be constricted to cause it to grip the column. This is effected by suitable clamp levers 2| and 22 actuated through right and left threaded screws and nuts rotated in forward and reverse directions by an electric motor 23. The motor 23 is actuated by an electric circuit comprising suitable electrical conductors and a control switch 24 located on the tool head. A cut-out switch 25 embodied in the electric circuit and actuated by a cam disk 26 on the clutch shifting shaft 20 serves to break the circuit to the motor except when the clutch actuating spool I8 is in its intermediate or neutral position. Thus actuation of the clamp motor is prevented should the arm translating means be effective. Likewise, means is provided for preventing the clutch spool I8 from being shifted to render the arm translating means effective when the arm clamp is closed. This comprises a slide bar 21 actuated by a rack and pinion connection 28 from the arm clamp motor 23. The bar 21 is provided with a reduced portion 2'! which, when the arm clamp is released, permits retraction of a locking pin 29 from engagement with a notch 30 formed in a segment 3| secured upon the clutch shifting shaft 20. As the arm clamp is closed a cam surface 32 on the bar 2! forces the pin 29 outwardly into engagement with the notch 30 and prevents actuation of either of the clutches H IZ From the foregoing it will be perceived that there has been provided interlocking means between the arm clamp and the arm translating means whereby the two may not be operative simultaneously.

As hereinbefore stated this invention relates primarily to improved safety means for control ling the arm translating means. This comprises a hand lever 33 secured upon a short shaft 34 journaled in bearings 35 and 35 provided, respectively, by a side wall of the tool head and by a bearing lug in said head. Also secured upon the shaft 34 is a rock arm 36 connected by a link 31 to a similar rock arm 38, journaled in a lug 39 formed upon the lower end of the tool head, and having a splined connection with an oscillatory shaft 40, journaled in bearings provided by the arm and extending lengthwise of the arm beneath the tool head. At the end of the shaft adjacent the column the shaft 40 has secured to it a gear segment 4| the teeth of which mesh with the teeth of a rack-bar 42 slidable horizontally in the arm 3. To the inner end of the rackbar there is secured an arm 43 having a bifurcated end which engages a pin carried by an arm 44, secured upon the clutch shifting shaft 20,

It will readily be perceived that swinging of the lever 33 one way from an intermediate or neutral position will, through the elements 34, 36, 31 and 38 rotate the shaft 40 in one direction which, through the segment 4|, rack-bar 42 and arms 43 and 44, will rotate the shaft 20 in a direction to render the clutch I l effective to translate the arm in one direction. Movement of the lever 33 in the other direction will cause the clutch l2 to be actuated thereby to translate the arm in the other direction.

It is to be noted that although the arm translation control lever 33 is of substantial length the lowermost end thereof is not materially below the bearing 5 for the drill spindle 5. This relatively high location of the lever precludes the likelihood of the operator accidentally hitting the lever while setting up his work. As a further safeguard against accidental engagement of either of the clutches H -IZ positive locking means is provided for holding the lever 33 in its neutral position even should it be accidentally engaged.

As shown most clearly in Fig. 5 the lever 33 is adapted to be moved to any one of three positions, to wit: an intermediate position a in which both of the clutches H and |2*- are ineffective, an upper position b in which the clutch I2 is rendered effective to elevate the arm, and a lower position 0 in which the clutch II is engaged to cause the arm to be lowered.

Secured to the side of the drill head adjacent the lever 33 is a segment 45 provided with a notch or indentation 45 adapted to receive the end of a spring pressed locking bolt 46 carried by the lever 33 when that lever is in its intermediate or neutral position, which is the position the lever occupies when the operator is setting up his work.

The lever 33 is preferably made of two sections, i. e. an upper section 33 which is secured to the shaft 34 and a lower section 33 slidably mounted on the lower portion of the upper section and provided with a hand grasp 33. A rod 41 secured in the section 33 extends upwardly through a bore 48 in the section 33 and provides at its upper end the lock bolt 46. Located within the bore 48 and surrounding the rod 41 between a plug 49 threaded into the section 33 and-a collar 50 formed on the rod is a coil spring 5| which normally tends to shift the rod upwardly and to engage the lock bolt with the notch 45 in the member 45. Downward movement of the section 33 will withdraw the lock bolt from said notch,

in opposition to the spring 5| and the operator may thereafter swing the lever 33 to engage either of the clutches I and I2.

From the foregoing it will be perceived that this invention has provided an improved safety control means for the arm translating means of a radial drill, which is so located as to be out of the operators way while he is setting up his work and which is positively locked against accidental movement which heretofore has resulted in inadvertent translation of the arm and which therefore has subjected the operator to great danger.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of this invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various utilizations by retaining one or more of the features that, from the standpoint of the prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of either the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should be, and are intended to be, comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalency of the following claims:-

Having thus revealed this invention, I claim as new and desire to secure the following combinations and elements, or equivalents thereof, by Letters Patent of the United States:-

1. In a radial drill having a column, an arm translatably mounted thereon, manually controlled means for clamping said arm to the column, power means for translating said arm on the column, of control means for said translating means comprising a reversing mechanism operative selectively to effect raising or lowering movements of said arm, a manually operable control lever carried by the arm for actuating said reversing mechanism; an interlock between said reversing mechanism control lever and said clamping means operative to render said control lever incapable of movement when said clamping means is in clamped position, additional means for rendering said last named lever incapable of movement when said arm is unclamped from said column, and manually operable means for rendering said last named means ineffective to lock said lever, said lever thereafter being capable of actuating said reversing mechanism only in the event said arm is unclamped from said column.

2. In a radial drill having a column, an arm translatably mounted thereon, a tool head trans latable on the arm, manually controlled means for clamping said arm to the column, power means for translating said arm on the column, of control means for said translating means comprising a reversing mechanism for selectively effecting raising or lowering movements of said arm, a control lever carried by said tool head for actuating said reversing mechanism; an interlock between said control lever and said clamping means operative to render said control lever incapable of movement when said arm is clamped on said column; and additional means for rendering said control lever incapable of movement when said arm is unclamped from said column comprising a plunger element carried by said lever in cooperative relation with a recess provided in a fixed part of said head, and manually operable means provided by said lever for withdrawing said plunger from said recess thereby releasing said lever, said lever thereafter being capable of actuating said reversing mechanism only in the event said arm is unclamped from said column.

3. In a radial drill having a column, an arm translatably mounted thereon, a tool head on said arm, manually controlled means for clamping said arm to the column, power means for translating said arm on the column, of control means for said translating means comprising a reversing mechanism having forward, reverse and neutral positions for selectively effecting raising or lowering movements of said arm, a control lever mounted on said head above the lower end thereof, a shaft extending lengthwise of said arm and below said tool head for actuating said reversing mechanism, a connection between said shaft and said lever; an interlock between said control lever and said clamping means normally operative to lock said reversing means in neutral position when said arm is in clamped relation to said column, supplemental means for locking said reversing means in said neutral position when said arm is unclamped from said column, and means actuated by said control lever for rendering said last named means ineffective to lock said reversing means in said neutral position, said lever thereafter being capable of actuating said reversing mechanism to one of its effective positions only in the event said arm is unclamped from said column.

4. In a radial drill having a column, an arm translatably mounted thereon, a tool head on said arm, means for translating said arm on said column and manually controlled means for clamping the arm to the column; of independent control means for said arm translating means comprising a reversing mechanism, a shaft journaled lengthwise of said arm beneath said tool head and connected to actuate said reversing mechanism, an independently operable control lever externally journaled on said tool head at a point substantially above the lower end of said tool head and above the lower edge of said arm, said lever having one neutral and two effective positions, a rock arm secured to and translatable with said head having a splined connection with said shaft; an operative connection within said head between said control lever and said rock arm whereby movements of the former are transmitted to the latter and therefrom to said reversing mechanism and manually releasable means provided by said lever for locking said lever in its neutral position thereby to prevent inadvertent actuation thereof to one of its effective positions.

LAWRENCE LEE SCHAUER. 

